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HDR10+ Technologies, the joint venture between 20th Century Fox, Panasonic, and Samsung, stepped up its game in the fight for HDR supremacy yesterday with the announcement that Panasonic and Samsung have deployed HDR10+ firmware in 2018 TVs.

With the firmware update, Panasonic said the majority of its 2018 4K models are now HDR10+ certified.

20th Century Fox also announced plans to start using HDR10+ encoding for several films in its upcoming new release slate. No dates were announced but the studio said it would announce availability in the coming weeks.

HDR10+ is an upgraded version of the HDR10 high-dynamic-range (HDR) format that’s said to optimize picture quality for 4K/Ultra HD displays by using dynamic tone mapping to reflect frame-to-frame or scene-to-scene variations in brightness, color saturation, and contrast. This dynamic metadata approach is similar to Dolby Vision and extends HDR performance beyond the HDR10 format, which is a static system that uses the same metadata throughout a program.

The HDR10+ license and logo program administered by HDR10+ Technologies is intended to ensure compliance with the HDR10+ spec.

Display certification qualifies requirements on the display mode, peak luminance level, peak luminance stability, transfer function, white point tracking performance, and color gamut coverage, while metadata processing certification qualifies carriage and accuracy of metadata over interfaces. Display management certification qualifies tone-mapping based on HDR10+ metadata such as shadow preservation, and 4K/Ultra HD Blu-ray player certification qualifies the processing and accuracy of HDR10+ metadata over an HDMI interface.

Depending on the category of adopter, certification can be obtained by self-certification or through an Authorized Testing Center (ATC) such as Allion and TTA — the first centers verified for HDR10+ certification.

HDR10+ Technologies said more than 80 companies have already applied for or completed the HDR10+ license program. The license is royalty-free and incurs a “nominal administrative fee.”

Click here for a list of companies adopting HDR10+.

“A standardized licensing process has allowed partners, including content creators, television and device manufacturers, to easily incorporate HDR10+ technology,” said Danny Kaye, executive vice president of 20th Century Fox and managing director of the Fox Innovation Lab. “We’re encouraged by the interest of early adopters and an expanded HDR10+ ecosystem that will improve the viewing experiences for all audiences.”

For more information, visit hdr10plus.org .

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